Suthin Shimp

[TimZ8]

Here is a Shimpaku I bought from Suthin four years ago and I had the pleasure of having him at my place to work on it a few weeks ago. A friend shared the cost with me for half a day and we all had great time. It was raining so we had to work in my kitchen and I'm still married! My wife actually enjoyed visiting with Suthin too. You can see the new shari added to compliment the jin.

 

[shohin kid]

Nice foliage pads!

 

[Lance]

I like that tree very much, well done..

 

[kytombonsai]

Tim, Nice tree. I think Suthin is one of the best Masters in the US. I have done 5 workshops with him over the years and have never been disappointed with his ideas on tree design.

Tom

 

[Rick Moquin]

Lovely! It would have been nice to see the tree before pic for comparison.

 

[greerhw]

Nice tree, you always get your moneys worth with a master, not only do your trees look better, but you learn something if you pay attention.

Keep it green,
Harry

 

[TimZ8]

Lovely! It would have been nice to see the tree before pic for comparison.

Here is a picture before Suthin worked it. This was early spring and I had just removed the wires. Notice there was no shari then.

 

[Rick Moquin]

Thanks Tim

 

[Glider]

It's a really nice tree, and the differences before and after are quite subtle, but make a huge difference...if you know what I mean

I don't know much about shimpaku (or any juniper), so forgive the ignorant question, but concerning the shari. It's very effective visually(I like the way it emphasises the trunk line), but quite narrow. Isn't it likely to form a callus and eventually close over a few years? Would you have to keep shaving the edges to stop that happening?

I know that would happen on my maples, but I have no experience with Junipers.

 

[TimZ8]

It's a really nice tree, and the differences before and after are quite subtle, but make a huge difference...if you know what I mean

I don't know much about shimpaku (or any juniper), so forgive the ignorant question, but concerning the shari. It's very effective visually(I like the way it emphasises the trunk line), but quite narrow. Isn't it likely to form a callus and eventually close over a few years? Would you have to keep shaving the edges to stop that happening?

I know that would happen on my maples, but I have no experience with Junipers.

Very good question. It would eventually close up some if nothing else is done. The plan is, once it starts to heal I will cut it wider. I may even cut it two more times to get the right look. I should be cutting it again the end of this month.

 

[daniel]

The tree is great! I do like shimpakus. They're growing on me day by day (no pun intended).

However, I have a question and to preface it, this is not a slap at anyone involved. The question is that the tree before the styling by Suthin seemed very natural--something you would see in nature if you looked at trees in the wild. However, the second tree just seems very "manicured." It's that I don't think you'd see a tree like this in nature, if left unchecked. Am I missing something? If someone can prove me wrong, go ahead. I enjoy being taught something different. I'm not extremely well-versed in the philosophy behind master's work. My thought is that I thought bonsai trees were meant to replicate nature in miniature. Just a thought.

Daniel

 

[greerhw]

That is the whole point of Japanese Bonsai, it's a abstract view of a tree as they see it. Nothing natural looking about Japanese Bonsai. That is a very nice, healthy tree, anyone would be proud to own it. Hear's the caveat, If it were my tree and I turned Marco loose on it, you would not be able to recognize it, it does not look all that much like a Japanese styled tree, nothing against the tree, it's beautiful. The Japanese prefer more Shari and Jin and less foliage.Take a look here and see if you can find anything you would see in nature.

Keep it green,
Harry

http://bonsaijapan.wordpress.com/kimuras/

 

[daniel]

That is the whole point of Japanese Bonsai, it's a abstract view of a tree as they see it. Nothing natural looking about Japanese Bonsai. That is a very nice, healthy tree, anyone would be proud to own it. Hear's the caveat, If it were my tree and I turned Marco loose on it, you would not be able to recognize it, it does not look all that much like a Japanese styled tree, nothing against the tree, it's beautiful. The Japanese prefer more Shari and Jin and less foliage.Take a look here and see if you can find anything you would see in nature.

Keep it green,
Harry

http://bonsaijapan.wordpress.com/kimuras/

Thanks, Harry. Yes, I can see that it's an interpretation, and with that you can get all sorts of views. Having built scale models down to the most minute of detail (another Japanese and Asian obsession), I am more into taking what I see in nature and replicating it in scale. No interpretation allowed in scale models, and likewise in my interpretation of bonsai. This may not win any awards for me, but that's not what I'm here for...

Daniel

 

[greerhw]

To each his own, it would be a boring hobbie if we all liked the same thing. You will enjoy Walter's web site if you haven't been there yet.

Keep it Green,
Harry

http://walter-pall.de/00gallery/index.html

 

[daniel]

To each his own, it would be a boring hobbie if we all liked the same thing. You will enjoy Walter's web site if you haven't been there yet.

Keep it Green,
Harry

http://walter-pall.de/00gallery/index.html

I have seen it and would give my left gonad to have some of those trees! I used to live in NM and Wyoming and would love to go back and have an opportunity to collect some trees. Legally, of course, but that's another discussion!

 

[TimZ8]

Here's a pictorial of this tree over about 4 years. One of the tree at purchase from Suthin, then first styling with Shane Carey, wires removed after 15 months, then Suthin's work on the tree. Shane started this tree in the right direction and Suthin improved on it. Suthin really shortened the branches making it more compact. He actually broke two branches by putting S bends in them to bring them closer to the trunk. The breaks were fine after I sealed them.

 

[JasonG]

This tree could never be a good bunjin. To be a good bunjin, a juniper bunjin, it would need to have twist's in the live vein, deadwood and a better shaped trunk. The trunk now suits itself to the style it is now and that is how this tree will be at its best.

Nice tree Tim and Suthin did a nice job on the clean up. Thanks for sharing it with us.

Jason

 

[Glider]

Very good question. It would eventually close up some if nothing else is done. The plan is, once it starts to heal I will cut it wider. I may even cut it two more times to get the right look. I should be cutting it again the end of this month.

Ahh, thanks for that info. It makes sense. I had always wondered when looking at junipers with wonderful sharimiki, whether they did ever try to heal over and so required constant maintenance, or whether it was a kind of 'fire and forget' procedure.

 

[R_F]

Very Nice. Thanks for posting.

 

[R_F]

That is the whole point of Japanese Bonsai, it's a abstract view of a tree as they see it. Nothing natural looking about Japanese Bonsai. That is a very nice, healthy tree, anyone would be proud to own it. Hear's the caveat, If it were my tree and I turned Marco loose on it, you would not be able to recognize it, it does not look all that much like a Japanese styled tree, nothing against the tree, it's beautiful. The Japanese prefer more Shari and Jin and less foliage.Take a look here and see if you can find anything you would see in nature.

Keep it green,
Harry

http://bonsaijapan.wordpress.com/kimuras/

Harry,

Have you seen the latest issue of BonsaiFocus Magazine? Marco took a trip to Taroko National Park in Taiwan to show some of the trees there that most say don't look "natural" as bonsai. Mind you, the trees in the park are huge normal sized trees. To me the trees in this park look very much like the Japanese bonsai we see.